Distracted Driving

Distracted Driving

There are three main types of distractions for drivers according to the National Highway Traffic Administration:

Visual – when a driver takes their eyes off the road (texting)

Manual – when hands are off the steering wheel (grabbing something from the car floor)

Cognitive – When the driver is distracted (dog barking in the car)

Any activity that diverts the driver’s full attention when he’s driving is considered distracted driving. Some examples of distracted driving include:

Texting on phone

Talking on a cell phone without speaker or cord

Dropping food or other items and picking it up

Interacting with children or pets in the car

Eating and drinking in the car

Reading maps, newspapers or other printed materials

Watching a movie clip on our ever advancing mobile phones

Looking outside the vehicle at other accidents

Many accidents these days are caused by over-texting or stimulation on our mobile phones. Ironically a device that helps us be more connected is also the leading cause of distracted driving accidents in the US.

How We Can Help

The term distracted driving has become a hot button issue in recent years, not only in California but nationally too. Distracted driving largely refers to acts committed by drivers in which they are distracted from doing what ought to be the most important task before them – the safe operation of their motor vehicles.

With the proliferation of cell phone use, especially when used for texting and posting status updates on social media sites, such as Facebook, distracted driving has virtually become the norm, and endangering other drivers’ safety and lives in the process. Distracted driving is not an issue to be disregarded but rather one to be taken seriously since a distracted driver can cause a serious collision that may result in injury or death.